Parents at PS/IS 78 in Long Island City have been petitioning the Department of Transportation (DOT) for a Play Street for students, and for the third time the agency has turned them down.

If approved, a street near the school would be closed to traffic during the school day to give kids extra space to play during recess.

The PTA is for it, school officials are for it, local representatives are behind it – even the local police precinct thinks it is a good idea and has offered to provide the necessary barriers and manpower to keep it safe.

Only DOT thinks it is a bad idea.

We realize DOT has other considerations, such as making sure the street is safe and usable for everyone, and that includes vehicles.

But when there is such overwhelming support for an idea, DOT needs to be flexible and listen to the “troops on the ground” as it were, and in this case that's the parents, and approve the Play Street.

Hasn't pedestrian safety been a major focus of this administration anyway?